UNIVERSITY PARK, Pa. — After earning her bachelor’s and master’s degrees from Penn State’s College of Education, Julie Henry is passionate about the possibilities technology can bring to the classroom. She’s preparing to further her career in technology education by enrolling in the College of Education’s Learning, Design and Technology (LDT) doctoral program this fall.
“I have a personal interest in technology and I love learning about it and how it can be used in personal and classroom assignments and learning,” Henry said. “How can we use technology to enhance learning and engagement and make our daily lives a little easier?”
A Lewistown native, Henry earned her bachelor’s degree in elementary and preschool education (K-6 certification) in 2008. She began her career in Mifflin County before moving to Bellefonte to teach at Bellefonte Area Elementary School. Although she didn’t go to college to be a technology teacher, she said Pennsylvania allows students to earn additional certifications of a particular nature if they pass the Praxis test in a technology subject. In addition to her elementary education certification, she also has certifications in business, computer and information technology and mathematics.
When Henry began her career, she wanted to be a kindergarten teacher, but eventually realized she preferred older students and ended up teaching fourth grade in the Mifflin County School District for six years. During that time, she discovered her passion for incorporating technology into classroom activities.
“I’ve always been the kind of teacher who likes to experiment with technology with my students to see if new tools could help enhance their learning and understanding,” Henry says, “which is what led me to take a position teaching technology in the Bellefonte Area School District (BASD).”
Technology teaching positions were fairly new at the time, so although Henry was given a broad outline of the course, he had to design his own lessons and activities.
“I was intrigued by the possibility of using my interests to have students not only learn about technology tools but also create things with them,” she says, “but with students ranging from kindergarten through fifth grade. … I thoroughly enjoyed the role and looked forward to seeing the innovative and amazing things my students would create with technology.”
The technology curriculum Henry developed at BASD is strong and incorporates the latest trends. Bellefonte schools have one Google Chromebook for every student, Henry said. In the early grades, students focus on basic technology skills, such as typing and creating documents, slides and spreadsheets using various Google programs. In the fourth and fifth grades, students take on more challenging projects, such as developing websites and podcasts.
“Once students have acquired the foundational skills, how can they apply them to practical, real-world situations?” she asked.
Henry said one of the main challenges of technology education is keeping up with the rapidly evolving technology landscape.
“I’ve always felt like once you get used to something, it changes,” she said, “it’s about staying on top of trends and seeing what sticks. … After I finished my first year, I was like, ‘OK, let me look at programs that can help with ideas.’ I’m a Penn Stater through and through, I bleed blue and white, and I found the LDT master’s program at World Campus and felt like it would be a great fit to learn more and bring more into building Bellefonte’s elementary technology program.”
Henry said enrolling in World Campus’ master’s program has provided her with more resources to become a better technology teacher, and she also appreciates the flexibility to take as many classes as she wants while working full time.
After completing her master’s degree, Henry took a year off to think about her next steps. After much research and discussion with her academic advisor and professors at Penn State, she decided to leave teaching and enroll in LDT’s residential doctoral program. Her ultimate goal is to teach at the university level.
“It’s a mid-career change that I’m really looking forward to,” she says. “It’s like, ‘Oh, I feel like I’m back in school!’
Henry was asked to fill a vacancy on the Penn State College of Education Alumni Board (ASB) last fall. He will serve the remainder of his term and was recently elected to his first three-year term. The role of the ASB is to keep alumni connected to the university. The board can support alumni as well as current students, faculty and staff.
“This is my way of giving back to the university,” she says. “There are so many unique and wonderful opportunities for students right now, and we need more alumni to know what goes on in the School of Education and how we prepare students to be teachers and counselors.”
